Door-latches



July 24, 1962 E. F. MATTESON DOOR-LATCHES FIG. I

Filed March 20, 1959 INVENTOR. Emory F Maiieson BY ited This invention relates in general to certain new and useful improvements in cabinet hardware and, more particularly, to door-latches.

In many types of cabinet-work, there is a great need for a very compact door-latch which is not only economical, but also very positive and efficient in operation. This is particularly true in the case of metal cabinets for commercial, industrial, and hospital use. Such cabinets must have clean modern lines and, at the same time, all mechanical parts, such as latches and hinges, must be simple in operation and sturdy in construction. Because low cost is also an important factor in such hardware, it is essential that the number of moving parts and requisite assembly operations be kept to a minimum. By so doing, it is possible to reduce the labor cost in original manufacture and also to facilitate inexpensive repairs, when, through accident, the latch is damaged.

It is therefore, the primary object of the present invention to provide a door-latch of simplified design and construction which can be very quickly assembled with a minimum of labor cost.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a door-latch which, by reason of its simplicity of construction, can be embodied in an artistic design of modem and highly attractive appearance.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide a door-latch of the type stated which is extremely rugged and durable in construction.

It is an additional object of the present invention to provide a door-latch of the type stated which includes a minimum number of parts and, therefore, can be quickly assembled and economically maintained.

With the above and other objects in view, my invention resides in the novel features of form, construction, arrangement, and combination of parts presently described and pointed out in the claims.

In the accompanying drawings-- FIG. 1 is a fragmentary perspective view of a cabinetdoor equipped with a door-latch constructed in accordance with and embodying the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a horizontal sectional view taken along line 2--2 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a vertical sectional view taken along line 3-3 of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a horizontal sectional view similar to FIG. 2 showing the bolt in withdrawn position so that the door may be opened;

FIG. 5 is a partially exploded perspective view of the door-latch illustrating the manner in which the door-latch can be assembled or disassembled.

Referring now in more detail and by reference characters to the drawings, which illustrate a preferred embodiment of the present invention, A designates a doorlatch comprising a main-shell or housing 1 having the shape of a shallow, preferably rectangular, open-topped box integrally including a back-wall 2, and side walls 3, 4-, 5, 6, all connected by rounded fillets so as to round off all sharp corners. Formed integrally with the side walls 3, 4, 5, 6, and extending around the entire periphery thereof is a rectangular flange 7 adapted to fit flush against the outwardly presented face i of the door D, into which the door-latch A is set and mounted. In this connection, it should be noted, that for convenience of illustration, the door D is shown as a single wood panel and the back-wall 2 is accordingly provided with a plurality of apertures 3 for accommodating screws 9 by which the shell 1 is held in place within the mortise or recess m. Obviously, the door can be made of sheet metal, in which case the shell 1 may be bolted, riveted, or spot-welded in place.

The side walls 3, 5, are respectively provided with horizontally aligned apertures 10, 11, located along the horizontal center-line of the shell 1 and the back-wall 2 is provided with an upstruck ridge or protuberanc 12 which extends vertically across, and is located equidistantly on opposite sides of, said horizontal center-line. Provided for snug-fitting sliding disposition through the aperture 16* is a rod-like bolt 13 beveled off at its outer end in the provision of a striker-face 14. Welded or otherwise rigidly secured to the bolt 13, at approximately the midpoint thereof, is a vertical flange 15 which is disposed equidistantly on opposite sides of the bolt 13 and at an angle to the longitudinal axis thereof so that its interior margin 16 is close to the back-wall 2 and presented in the direction of the side wall 5. The other or outer margin 17 of the flange 15 is presented in the direction of the side wall 3 and lies approximately in the plane of the flange 7, such margin 17 being arcuately turned or reversely bent and integrally merged into a flat plate 18 which preferably extends vertically across the open top of the shell 1 between the walls 4, 6, substantially as shown in FIG. 3. Rearwardly of the flange 15, i.e., to the left as viewed in FIGS. 2 and 4, the bolt 13 is diametrally reduced in the provision of an annular shoulder 19 and a tail-portion 20 which fits snugly but slidably through the axial bore 21 of a tubular bushing or sleeve 22 which is, in turn, diainetrally reduced at its rear end in the formation of an annular shoulder 23 and skirt 24, the latter fittingly snugly within the aperture 11. Interposed, in compression, between the sleeve 22 and the shoulder 19 and disposed encirclingly around the tail-portion 20 is a spiral spring 25. As will be seen by reference to FIGS. 2 and 4, the spring 25 serves two functions. It holds the sleeve 22 against the side wall 5 with its skirt securely seated within the aperture 11 and it also biases the bolt 13 outwardly through the aperture 10 for seated engagement within the detent recess 1' formed in the door-jamb j, the latter being provided with a strike-plate 26 of conventional function and design. When the bolt 13 is engaged within the detent recess r, the margin 16 of the flange will abut against the ridge 12 which thus functions as a stop and prevents over-travel of the bolt 13 in the forward direction, i.e., to the right as viewed in FIG. 2.

The plate 18 is relatively wide in the horizontal direction and completely conceals the spring 25, imparting a neat attractive appearance to the front of the door-latch A. Moreover, the rear vertical margin 27 thereof will fit against the forward margin of the side wall 5 in the manner of a stop. The margin 17 serves as a finger-grip so that the bolt 13 can be manually pushed back from the position shown in FIG. 2 to the position shown in FIG. 4.

The doorlatch A of the present invention consists of only four simple, but, nevertheless, rugged parts and, as iilustrated in FIG. 5, can be very quickly assembled by successively slipping the spring 25 and the sleeve 22 over the tail-portion 2t) and pushing the forward end of the bolt 13 at an angle through the aperture 10. Thereupon, the sleeve is manually pushed forward, compressing the spring 25 and the taail-portion 20 is swung inwardly in the direction of the arrow into alignment with the aperture 11. The tail-portion 2G is then slipped through the aperture 11 and the sleeve 22 released so that its skirt 24 can be seated in the aperture 11 with the shoulder 23 flush against the face of the side wall 5. The door-latch A is then fully assembled and is ready for installation and use. When the door is made of a wood panel, it is, of course, necessary to provide drilled clearance holes I1 I1 as best seen in FIGS. 2 and 4. On the other hand, if the door is made of sheet metal, such holes may not be necessary. This matter, however, is something which is commonly encountered in cabinet-work and suitable adaptations of the door-structure can be made by those skilled in the art. Since the present invention relates only to the door-latch, such adaptations in the doorstruoture need not be considered in detail herein.

It should be understood that changes and modifications in the form, construction, arrangement, and combination of the several parts of the door-latches may be made and substituted for those herein shown and described without departing from the nature and principle of my invention.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

l. A door-latch comprising a shell having opposed side walls, one of said side walls having a first aperture, the other of said side walls having a second aperture, said apertures being aligned lengthwise of the shell, a rodshaped bolt having one end sized for slidable insertion through the first aperture, said bolt being diametrally reduced at its other end in the provision of an annular shoulder and an axially extending tail-portion, a tubular bushing slidably mounted on the tail-portion and having an end surface facing said first aperture, said bushing being diametrally reduced at the end facing the second aperture in the provision of an annular shoulder, a skirt formed by the diametrally reduced portion, said skirt being seated in the second aperture and the annular shoulder of the bushing being in abutting relationship with the side wall in which the second aperture is formed, whereby to support said tail-portion for sliding movement in and through the second aperture, a spring disposed around the tail-portion in endwise abutment between the shoulder of the bolt and the end surface of the bushing whereby to hold the bushing seated and also bias the bolt toward locking position, a handle mounted on said bolt, and means for limiting the movement of the bolt toward the locking position.

2. A door-latch comprising a shell having opposed side walls, one of said side walls having a first aperture, the other of said side walls having a second aperture, said apertures being aligned lengthwise of the shell, a rodshaped bolt having one end sized for slidable insertion through the first aperture, said bolt being diametrally reduced at its other end in the provision of an annular shoulder and an axially extending tail-portion, a tubular bushing slidably mounted on the tail-portion and having an end surface facing said first aperture, said bushing being diametrally reduced at the end facing the second aperture in the provision of an annular shoulder, a skirt formed by the diametrally reduced portion, said skirt being seated in the second aperture and the annular shoulder of the bushing being in abutting relationship with the side wall in which the second aperture is formed, whereby to support said tail-portion for sliding movement in and through the second aperture, a spring disposed around the tail-portion in endwise abutment between the shoulder of the bolt and the end surface of the bushing whereby to hold the bushing seated and also bias the bolt toward locking position, handle means on the bolt, and an inwardly turned flange associated with the handle means, and an upstruck ridge integrally formed on the shell and adapted for engagement with the flange to limit movement of the bolt.

3. A door-latch comprising a shell having opposed side walls, one of said side walls having a first aperlture, the other of said side walls having a second aperture, said apertures being aligned lengthwise of the shell, a bolt having one end sized for slidable insertion through the first aperture, said bolt being diametrally reduced at its other end in the provision of an annular shoulder and an axially extending tail-portion, a tubular bushing slidably mounted on the tail-portion and having an end surface facing said first aperture, said bushing being diametraliy reduced at the end facing the second aperture in the provision of an annular shoulder, a skirt formed by the diametrally reduced portion, said skirt being seated in the second aperture and the annular shoulder of the bushing being in abutting relationship with the side wall in which the second aperture is formed, whereby to support said tail-portion for sliding movement in and through the second aperture, a spring disposed around the tailportion in endwise abutment between the shoulder of the bolt and the end surface of the bushing whereby to hold the bushing seated and also bias the bolt toward locking position, handle means rigidly mounted on the bolt, an inwardly turned flange associated with the handle means, and stop means on the shell adapted for engagement with the flange to limit the movement of the bolt toward locking position.

4. A door-latch comprising a shell having opposed side walls, one of said side walls having a first aperture, the other of said side walls having a second aperture, said apertures being aligned lengthwise of the shell, a bolt having one end sized for slidable insertion through the first aperture, said bolt being diametrally reduced at its other end in the provision of an annular shoulder and an axially extending tail-portion, a tubular bushing slidably mounted on the tail-portion and having an end surface facing said first aperture, said bushing being diametrally reduced at the end facing the second aperture in the provision of an annular shoulder, a skirt formed by the diametrally reduced portion, said skirt being seated in the second aperture and the annular shoulder of the bushing being in abutting relationship with the side wall in which the second aperture is formed, whereby to support said tail-portion for sliding movement in and through the second aperture, a spring disposed around the tail-portion in endwise abutment between the shoulder of the bolt and the end surface of the bushing whereby to hold the bushing seated and also bias the bolt toward the first aperture, handle means rigidly mounted on the bolt, an inwardly turned flange associated with the handle means, and stop means on the shell adapted for engagement with the flange to limit the movement of the bolt toward the first aperture.

5. A door-latching comprising a shell having opposed side walls, one of said side walls having a first aperture, the other of said side walls having a second aperture, said apertures being aligned lengthwise of the shell, a bolt having one end sized for slidable insertion through the first aperture, said bolt being cliametrally reduced at its other end in the provision of an annular shoulder and an axially extending tail-portion, a tubular bushing slidably mounted on the tail-portion and having an end surface facing said first aperture, said bushing being diametrally reduced at the end facing the second aperture in the provision of an annular shoulder, a skirt formed by the diametrally reduced portion, said skirt being seated in the second aperture and the annular shoulder of the bushing being in abutting relationship with the side wall in which the second aperture is formed, whereby to support said tail-portion for sliding movement in and through the second aperture, a spring disposed around the tailportion in endwise abutment between the shoulder of the bolt and the end surface of the bushing whereby to hold the bushing seated and also bias the bolt toward locking position, handle means rigidly mounted on the bolt, an inwardly turned flange associated with the handle means, said handle means including a fiat plate extending, in a plane parallel to the axis of the bolt, over the spring substantially concealing it, and stop means on the shell adapted for engagement with the flange to limit the movement of the bolt toward locking position.

6, A door-latch comprising a shell having opposed side walls and a back wall, said back wall having a plurality of apertures for accommodating fasteners, one of said side walls having a first aperture, the other of said side walls having a second aperture, said apertures being aligned lengthwise of the shell, a rod-shaped bolt having one end sized for slidable insertion through the first aperture, said bolt being diametrally reduced at its other end in the provision of an annular shoulder and an axially extending tail-portion, a tubular bushing slidably mounted on the tail-portion and having an end surface facing said first aperture, said bushing being diametrally reduced at the end facing the second aperture in the provision of an annular shoulder, a skirt formed by the diametrally reduced portion, said skirt being seated in the second aperture and the annular shoulder of the bushing being in abutting relationship with the side wall in which the second aperture is formed, whereby to support said tailportion for sliding movement in and through the second aperture, a spring disposed around the tail-portion in endwise abutment between the shoulder of the bolt and the end surface of the bushing whereby to hold the bushing seated and also bias the bolt toward locking position, a handle mounted on said bolt, and means for limiting the movement of the bolt toward the first aperture.

7. A door-latch comprising a shell having opposed side walls and a back wall, said back wall having a plurality of apertures for accommodating fasteners, one of said side walls having a first aperture, the other of said side walls having a second aperture, said apertures being aligned lengthwise of the shell, a rod-shaped bolt having one end sized for slidable insertion through the first aperture, said bolt being diametrally reduced at its other end in the provision of an annular shoulder and an axially extending tail-portion, a tubular bushing slidably mounted on the tail-portion and having an end surface facing said first aperture, said bushing being diametrally reduced at the end facing the second aperture in the provision of an annular shoulder, a skirt formed by the diametrally reduced portion, said skirt being seated in the second aperture and the annular shoulder of the bushing being in abutting relationship with the side wall in which the second aperture is formed, whereby to support said tailportion for sliding movement in and through the second aperture, a spring disposed around the tail-portion in endwise abutment between the shoulder of the bolt and the end surface of the bushing whereby to hold the bushing seated and also bias the bolt toward locking position, handle means on the bolt, and stop means on the shell associated with said handle means to limit the movement of the bolt toward locking position.

8. A door-latch comprising a shell having opposed side walls and a back wall, said back wall having a plurality of apertures for accommodating fasteners, one of said side walls having a first aperture, the other of said side Walls having a second aperture, said apertures being aligned lengthwise of the shell, a rodshaped bolt having one end sized for slidable insertion through the first aperture and extending lengthwise of the shell, said rod-shaped bolt being diametrally reduced at its other end in the provision of an annular shoulder and an axially extending tail-portion, a tubular bushing slidably mounted on the tail-portion and having an end surface facing said first aperture, said bushing being diametr ally reduced at the end facing the second aperture in the provision of an annular shoulder, a skirt formed by the diametrally reduced portion, said skirt being seated in. the second aperture and the annular shoulder of the bushing being in abutting relationship with the side wall in which the second aperture is formed, whereby to support said tail-portion for sliding movement in and through the second aperture, a spring disposed around the tail-portion in endwise abutment between the shoulder of the bolt and the end surface of the bushing whereby to hold the bushing seated and also bias the bolt toward said first aperture, handle means on the bolt, and stop means on the shell associated with said handle means to limit the movement of the bolt toward the first aperture.

9. A door-latch comprising a shell having opposed side walls, one of said side walls having a first aperture, the other of said side walls having a second aperture, said apertures being aligned lengthwise of the shell, a rodshaped bolt having one end sized for slidable insertion through the first aperture, said bolt being diametrally reduced at its other end in the provision of an annular shoulder and an axially extending tail-portion, said bolt being beveled at the end adapted to extend through the first aperture in the provision of a striker face, a tubular bushing slidably mounted on the tail-portion and having an end surface facing said first aperture, said bushing being diametrally reduced at the end facing the second aperture in the provision of an annular shoulder, a skirt formed by the diamet-rally reduced portion, said skirt being seated in the second aperture and the annular shoulder of the bushing being in abutting relationship with the side wall in which the second aperture is formed, whereby to support said tail-portion for sliding movement in and through the second aperture, a spring disposed around the tail-portion in endwise abutment between the shoulder of the bolt and the end surface of the bushing whereby to hold the bushing seated and also bias the bolt toward locking position, handle means mounted on said bolt, and means operatively associated with said handle means for limiting the movement of the bolt toward the locking position.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 264,539 Kempshall Sept. 19, 1882 1,139,869 Howard May 18, 1915 1,431,571 Daly Oct. 10, 1922 1,660,515 Maxon Feb. 28, 1928 2,746,784 Holritz May 22, 1956 

